News from 

our Parish

Our parish is one of the biggest parishes in Tasmania. We cover an area from Risdon Vale through to South Arm and out to Cambridge. In our parish we have three churches where Mass is celebrated every weekend, as well as during the week. We have the Church of Incarnation at Lindisfarne, Corpus Christi Church at Bellerive and one we hope you are very familiar with - John Paul II Church at Rokeby! 

We also have three primary schools as well as one high school in our parish – John Paul II Catholic School, Corpus Christi Catholic School, St Cuthbert’s Catholic School and MacKillop College. We also have five aged care facilities in our parish and lots and lots of people. Altogether we make one parish family! Each one of you and your families are very important members of our family of faith in the Bellerive Parish.

PARISH NEWS

A letter from Father Richard 

Dear Friends,

I have some sad news to share. I met with the Archbishop on Tuesday of this week and submitted my resignation as Parish Priest of Bellerive Lindisfarne Parish, and applied for and have been granted twelve months leave of absence from priestly ministry. This is the hardest decision I have ever made, and may come as a shock and a disappointment, but I believe in the depth of my heart that it is the right course of action. 

I will spend this time caring for my father who is in increasing need of support. I know I will never regret this quality time with Dad, but it will mean upheaval and uncertainty at the same time. I also have a number of unresolved personal issues which have arisen since my cancer journey. I had hoped that these would recede with time but the opposite has proved to be the case, and I intend to find the time and energy to address some of these issues. I might add that the frustration I have felt with some church attitudes and priorities has not helped in this regard.

In order to provide clarity for the parish in the short and longer term, the Archbishop and I agreed that I resign as Parish Priest of Bellerive-Lindisfarne Parish in order to pursue this course of action, and this I have done. This resignation will take effect on Monday 8th August. I regret the uncertainty that my decision will cause for the parish community. I expect that the Archbishop will be in a position to make an announcement about the provision of priestly ministry for the Bellerive-Lindisfarne Parish in the near future.

It has been an enormous privilege to serve as a priest in Tasmania for the past 25 years, and in the Bellerive-Lindisfarne Parish, the parish of my childhood, for the last three and a half years. I am grateful for both the wonderful and the tragic experiences I have shared with so many during the journey, and for those who have strengthened and supported me along the way.

This is a wonderful parish and I am very sad to leave, but as I said, I believe this to be the right decision for me, and one that I hope will be of long-term benefit on many levels.

Richard Ross